2 days post otoplasty and my ears are red, swollen and oozing. Should I go to ER? Taking Cipro-5 days (Photo)

Question

My dr. said leave dressing on 3 days but the nurse said it could come off after 48 hours. It felt extremely tight after the anesthesia wore off and it made my ears and the base of my neck hurt badly so I called and the nurse said I could remove it. I took off the dressing very carefully and found my ears to be extremely red swollen and oozing. There is a fluid filled area that I am concerned about. I sent several pics to the dr but he said everything is normal. Should I go to an ER?

Christian L. Stallworth, MD · Answer

Redness, swelling, tenderness and even some serous drainage are all normal postoperatively. You are on appropriate antibiotics and true infection is not likely to present like this so close in time to the surgery. You should be I mproving daily though this may be slow.trust your surgeon- you chose them for your surgery and need to allow them to guide you through the healing. Unless you are having a true fever or other worsening symptoms, there is no need to go to an ER. The ER physician will defer to your surgeons expertise anyway- the ER doctor is not an otoplasty surgeon.

Waldemar Merck, MD · Answer

These changes are not uncommon 2 days after an otoplasty. I recommend that you to go to your surgeon, when you haven’t already done so, and get him to prescribe you an antibiotic.

Samir Shureih, MD · Answer

Post operative follow up and care should be done by the original surgeon. That is part of the surgery and the doctoring. Call your surgeon.

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2 days post otoplasty and my ears are red, swollen and oozing. Should I go to ER? Taking Cipro-5 days (Photo)

Answers (3)

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